United States v Merck Medco

United States v Merck Medco Parties The parties in the case involve the United States government and Medco Health Solutions, which is an international company that offers medical services. The government side has a number of parties, including the department of Justice. Specifically, the department of Justice represents the Inspector General in charge of Health and Human services. This shows that the department of Justice is the American institution charged with the responsibility of ensuring that sanity is upheld in society.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on United States v Merck Medco specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The office of personnel management is also mentioned as the party in the case. The department of Justice in the case represents the personnel office. The government side is the complainant while Medco Solutions is the accused. On the accused side, Diane Collins, George Bradfort, William Gauger and Joseph Piacentile are mention ed as parties. Facts There are many facts in the case involving the United States government and Merck-Medco Solutions. One is that Medco is a company that prescribes treatment to patients. It offers pharmacy services to employees in both private and public sector. Medco company runs mail order pharmacies and call centers that are licensed by individual states and other bureaucratic institutions. The company conscribes employees that are approved by the government to exercise their professions. The company offers mail order treatments and allied benefit services to federal workers, retirees and their dependents (Showalter, 2007). Medco Company entered into various agreements with state agencies such as Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. Medco is a product of a merger between Merck Company and Medco RX Services Company. Therefore, in this, the word ‘Medco’ represents all its subsidiaries, forerunners and descendants. Another actuality is that Collins was the depu ty president and general manager of Merck-Medco RX Services from early 1999 to early 2001. Furthermore, Bradford and Gauger are specialized pharmacists who were conscribed by Medco Company before 1999. On May 6, 1999, Hunt and Gauger filed a qui tam action in the district court. On February 10, 2000, Piacentile filed another qui tam in the same court. Hunt and Gauger qui tam and Peacentile qui tam were merged into a single case. The two cases form the basis of this case. Moreover, it is a fact that the United States asserted that Medco and defendant Collins presented claims for payment of funds into various government financed health care plans including Blue Cross Shield Association and the Government Employees Hospital Association. Again, the United States government asserted that it had some civil claims against Medco Company and Collins. The government disputed that Medco Company had breached the contract by going against state pharmacy policies and rules (Showalter, 2007). Furt hermore, the company had contravened the pharmaceutical codes of ethics. Medco Company failed to fulfill its contractual performance accords by failing to testify its performance accurately under Federal Plan policies. The government confirmed that Medco Company failed to convene its responsibilities by suggesting bogus payments. On the other hand, the company used false credentials to lessen legal responsibilities.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This was done by annulling instructions for which no evidence existed in Medco’s management Database. Again, the company called off prescriptions without a legitimate explanation. It is factual that the company gave out prescriptions without accurately carrying out DUR test and without aptly contacting prescribers. It is a reality that Medco Company utilized the services of under qualified technicians to carry out functions that are legally preserved for experts. Such functions must always be performed by an expert in the field of pharmacy or must be supervised by a pharmacist. Such mistakes included arbitrating and giving prescriptions to patients without being assessed or directed by a qualified pharmacist. Litigation The criticisms in this case were filed under the federal false claims act and state false claims acts against Medco Health Solutions. The cases assumed that Merck and Medco analytically deceived government-funded health indemnity plans by tolerating bribes in exchange for referring patients to particular goods, furtively tolerating rebates from medicine producers in exchange for rising the market share of goods, surreptitiously rising long-standing medicine expenses and failing to conform to state-mandated reputation of care values. This was conducted in a number of ways. One of the ways included requesting general practitioners to change patient prescriptions (drug subst itution) by offering deceptive, bogus or imperfect information that undermined the integrity of patients. The managers were only concerned about profits. Another technique employed was secretively rising the price of drugs offered to recipients by intentionally interchanging patients’ prescriptions to stop them from taking advantage of soon to be produced standard drugs. Lastly, the company was accused of defying fundamental state obligations governing pharmacist regulation of drug execution procedures. Through such behavior, the United States assumed that Merck and Medco dishonored their agreements with government-funded health indemnity plans (Showalter, 2007). These cases were revealed by whistleblowers in support of the United States government. On June 20, 2003, the United States interceded in the case following a widespread examination of realistic accusations and evidentiary support offered by parties. This study was performed by several national organizations, includi ng the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Office of Inspector General of the Office of Personnel Management, and the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. On December 9, 2003, the United States modified the case by adding two administrators of Medco as defendants.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on United States v Merck Medco specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In the modified case, these managers were blamed for hiding deliberate obliteration of patient treatment, annihilating and ordering the demolition of patient prescriptions and giving confusing reports concerning the conspiracy when interrogated by the Department of Justice. The modified case also added another case, which was the violation of the law as regards to Public Contract Anti-Kickback Act for making shocking payments to health progra ms to persuade them to choose Medco as a pharmacy benefit director for government indentures. Decisions In this case, the court decided that Merck-Medcos conformity programs were either fictional or inadequate in approval of the irresponsible obligations mentioned. The conclusion did not clarify the extent of the Merck-Medco observance plan but the Court evidently concluded that the company presented bogus claims in thoughtless disrespect of their falsity. The resolution did not state that the top executives had any authentic information that the claims presented by Merck-Medco were bogus, but it surmised that the observance plan that was in place at Merck-Medco was obviously not enough to identify and stop the false assertions (McClellan, 2010). Obviously, the Government was not in a position to prove overwhelmingly that managers and bosses of the corporation had concrete data as regards to the supposed counterfeit statement or satisfactory participation in the billing procedure to have irresponsible disregard or intentional unawareness of the bogus claims presented to Blue Cross and Blue Shield. In this case, the court ruled that Medco Company had contravened the law and had bridged the contract. The company had no option but to pay the government a huge amount of money as compensation for damages. Effects on healthcare The Merck-Medco case is the first that an outworker has been pronounced for violating criminal law in part since the observance plan was imperfect and inadequate. Consequently, a number of proposals aimed at intensifying the conformity program have been put forward. Firstly, any healthcare company should set up and circulate a code of conduct in the company as fast as possible if it is not yet publicized (Tauber, 2005).Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The administrator agreement must be designed to serve as a top observer with unswerving task for all conformity actions (Showalter, 2007). The person in charge must have direct admission to the CEO and the Board of Directors. Compliance manager must be given power, authority to separately investigate and act on issues related to law, and policies that oblige the corporation to operate or not operate in particular ways. Furthermore, all workers in the healthcare sector must be educated about the existence and the particulars of the companys observance plan. To do this, normal reports, at least weekly, should be issued to the Board of Directors as regards to any interior surveys (Tauber, 2005). Managers in the healthcare organizations should set up episodic interior reviews and institute techniques for supervising observance and incessantly examining the hotline system for detecting contraventions. Furthermore, reporters must be guaranteed of their security. Finally, the organization should set off any interior inquiry based on plausible information regarding reported crimes. References McClellan, M. (2010). A National Strategy to put Accountable Care into Practice. Health Affairs, 29(5). Showalter, S. (2007). The Law of Healthcare Administration (5th ed.) New York: Health Administration Press. Tauber, A. (2005). Patient Autonomy and the Ethics of Responsibility. Cambridge: MIT Press.

Angelina Grimk's Letters to Catharine Beecher Essay

Angelina Grimk's Letters to Catharine Beecher - Essay Example Such a formulaic approach may be somewhat non-engaging with the reader; however, it is necessary in order to understand the progression and development that many of the key agents of societal change have embarked upon as they have sought to better themselves as well as the societies in which they lived. This was very much the case with Angelina Grimke’s efforts to abolish slavery and better the plight of women in the society of her time. As such, this brief analysis piece will discuss the ways in which Grimke accomplished some of these feats as a function of analysis of the letters that she wrote to a fellow friend and colleague Catharine Beecher. The back and forth between the two women has been subsequently published by a number of different sources that sought to analyze the distinct political and social growth that their debate precipitated. The fact of the matter was that Beecher and Grimke represented the very early forms of conservative and liberal thought within the Am erican political system. Although neither of them had the right to vote or carried any great amount of political clout, the arguments that were employed as well as the type of logic they both relied upon denotes a fundamentally American development of the political spectrum from that of the woman that supported the status quo as something â€Å"ordained by God† and the woman who found the status quo repulsive and ripe for a systemic change which could work to make the American political and social landscape more representative, fair, and less racist. In one of her letters, Beecher wrote to Grimke, â€Å"Women hold a subordinate position to men as ‘a beneficent and immutable Divine law’ †¦ and are the proper persons to make appeals to the rulers whom they appoint†¦ [females] are surely out of their place in attempting to do it themselves†.1 Such a world view is of course patently evident of a very traditional acceptance of gender roles within soci ety. However, it should be noted that rather than engaging on the topic of whether or not slavery was itself a tenable and/or defensible position, Beecher chose instead to argue the point from the perspective that women should put themselves in subjugation to the men who have the God-given right to make and define law. Such an approach was of course a cheap rhetorical attempt to ignore the broader moral question that defined the issues. As such, Grimke’s response served to exploit and shine light on such a cheap rhetorical aside. Said Grimke as a way of response to such a traditionalist and closed-minded response to the moral ills of the time, â€Å"Women ought to feel a peculiar sympathy in the colored man's wrong, for, like him, she has been accused of mental inferiority, and denied the privileges of a liberal education†. 2 In such a way, Grimke brought the debate directly back to the prescient issue with regards to how women are as morally responsible for the sin of slavery as their male counterparts. Grimke goes on to state, â€Å"The doctrine of blind obedience and unqualified submission to any human power, whether civil or ecclesiastical, is the doctrine of despotism, and ought to have no place among Republicans and Christians†.3 Although many of her time thought her to be a radical of sorts and

Industrial Relations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Industrial Relations - Essay Example As the discussion declares the first stature for the labourers was formulated to help the community get access to physically well built men who were not engaged in any other activity of craftsmanship etc. to work for hire on a standardized wage rate. This was the first time that the wages were standardized through a public legislation. In the middle ages there was a shortage of labour owing to an epidemic. Legislations were made so as to prevent people from taking advantage of the situation by asking for exorbitant remuneration in return for the labour. Thus, there were penalties not only for those asking for an increase in wages but also for those lords who were ready to pay extra for getting their work done. There were even statues for those workers who moved to other countries in search of better wages and work. The statute allowed the sheriffs to arrest such workers and bring them back to Britain. This paper stresses that the early 15th century saw some more liberalization on working laws and even child labour statutes. Earlier laws required parents to put children in such labour which was the requirement of their estates. But the new statute gave freedom to the parents to decide for their children’s future and allowed them to send their children to school. There were modifications to the law restricting free movement of labour and also no control of workers over the decision of setting wages for work. Though freedom was given to the lords over decision regarding wages, the workers were still not free to decide what wage they can work for.

Minor Assignment Marketing Mix Essay Example for Free

Minor Assignment Marketing Mix Essay Introduction This report has been compiled in order to describe the four most common elements of the marketing mix which are described by Elliot, Rundle-Thiele and Waller (2010 p.18-21) in the following few sentences. * Product – â€Å"A good, service or idea offered to the market for exchange.† (p.18) * Price – â€Å"The amount of money a business demands in exchange for its offerings.† (p.20) * Promotion – â€Å"The marketing activities that make potential customers, partners and society aware of and attracted to the business’s offerings. † (p.20) * Place (Distribution) – â€Å"The means of making the offering available to the customer at the right time and place† (p.21) In conjunction with these descriptions, all four marketing mix elements will be analysed and shown how they can be applied to retail petrol outlets and the products which are made available to customers. The Marketing Mix Elliot et. al describe the marketing mix as â€Å"the different elements that marketers need to consider.† (2010 p. 18) When using the marketing mix to market retail petrol outlets such as Caltex Woolworths or Coles Express, marketers need to consider the Product, Price, Promotion and Distribution (Place) of not only petrol, but many other consumer and specialty products which retail petrol outlets offer. Product It can be seen in retail petrol stations that other than the expected fuels like unleaded and diesel which are generally relatively low in terms of their profit margin, â€Å"some oil firms claim that supermarkets sell petrol at a loss in order to attract customers.† (The Economist, 1996 p.58) Other products are required in order to boost profits for the retail petrol chains’ owner. These other products are mostly the convenience type and can range from the daily newspaper and chewing gum, to a bottle of orange juice or a loaf of bread. There are three categories of convenience products outlined by Elliot et al. which are all found in retail petrol outlets and include staple products, impulse products and emergency products. (2010 p. 207) * Staple products – These are considered to be everyday grocery products like bread and milk, purchased regularly by consumers and therefore aren’t heavily promoted * Impulse products – These are considered to be only purchased when seen, like confectionary or magazines which are eye catching and are usually found around the cash register. * Emergency products – These are considered to be those products which are only purchased when really needed, like a raincoat or an umbrella. Although there are a lot of products sold by retail petrol outlets like Caltex Woolworths and Coles Express, the obvious product centred on all retail petrol outlets is the fuel supplied to consumers. The varieties of fuels which can be purchased can include: * E10 – 10% Ethanol. * E85 – 85% Ethanol. * E95 – 95% Ethanol. * Unleaded – Standard fuel. * Hi Octane – Offered for high performance vehicles. * LPG – Alternative to liquid fuel, a Gas product. * Diesel – More efficient lower sulphur producing by product. There is a vast selection of fuels for consumers to choose from and although the blends of fuels stay similar, the names and descriptions of these fuels tend to change from outlet to outlet. For example, when you drive into a Caltex Woolworths you are confronted with the choice of â€Å"Caltex Vortex 95 or 98,† both are hi octane blends offered to a prospective purchaser. (Woolworths fuels, Website.) Price When dealing with topic of pricing in retail petrol stores, the outcome of the price has to be both beneficial to the seller, and seen as a good deal to the buyer, otherwise no trades will take place. As stated previously, petrol itself tends to have a lower margin for profit which means the strategic pricing of other products in-store needs to be addressed as well as ensuring that the price of petrol is not seen as out of balance with other suppliers. There is an obvious demand for petrol, as almost everyone who is able, drives or rides a vehicle which requires fuel to run. So it could be argued that retail petrol stations don’t necessarily set their own prices, but go off supplier guidelines which base their fuel pricing strategy on demand, â€Å"Demand based pricing sets prices according to the level of aggregate or individual customer demand in the market.† (Elliott et al. 2010 p. 250) Elliott et al. also continue to write that both Caltex Woolworths and Coles Express hold more than 60% of the Australian fuel market share (2010 p.268) so high demand from their suppliers will enable them to lower their fuel prices and therefore gain more customers, earning higher profits. Pricing of other products offered by retail petrol outlets such as bread or milk tend to have the opportunity to be competitive and more fairly priced than a standard petrol station, the major grocery companies behind retail petrol outlets like Woolworths and Coles focus on gaining more ground off one and other, price drops are reflected in store and this also proves more profitable, because consumers are drawn into purchasing something they wouldn’t normally associate with their petrol. Promotion An important aspect in the success of retail petrol outlets is in their promotion, or the way in which their fuels and other products are portrayed to potential customers. There are many numbers of ways in which retail petrol outlets use promotional tools to make the public more aware of what their outlet has to offer. Using the Coles Express website for example, it can be seen that promotion plays a major role in the marketing of retail petrol outlets, on the homepage can be found five key promotional campaigns designed to catch the eye of potential customers. The opportunity to win â€Å"the ultimate weekend Ferrari drive experience† or â€Å"two Cadbury chocolate bars for four dollars† (Coles Express, website) are two examples of how Coles Express use promotion as a tool to gain the interest of potential customers. The use of shopper dockets and rewards cards are also a major way in which retail petrol outlets have promoted themselves, using incentives of cheaper fuel by spending amounts of money in store or purchasing earlier in their supermarkets and bringing the docket to the petrol station in order to gain the fuel discount. In the recent past, retail petrol outlets have encouraged shoppers to buy big in store in order to earn big discounts off fuel â€Å"motorists who spend more than $300 during one supermarket visit during the next three days receive a 40 cent per litre petrol discount. Shoppers who spend more than $200 or more receive a 25 cent a litre discount, while those who spend $100 or more get a 10 cent a litre discount.† (Cranston 2009) Woolworths have the â€Å"Everyday Rewards† program, and Coles have the â€Å"Fly buys† rewards program. Both these programs offer rewards point in exchange for purchases made in their outlets. Another way in which retail petrol outlets can promote their product is through sponsorship, Coles Express for example are sponsoring Daffodil day, a program not normally associated with fuel but this can help to grow an organisations image, by supporting such a worthy cause, Coles express may gain respect from the community and in turn boost their profits. Place (Distribution) The transportation and distribution of products including fuel to retail petrol outlets operates under the marketing mix category of â€Å"Place.† â€Å"The science (or art) of ensuring products are in the right place at the right time in the right quantity is known as logistics and the various partners that contribute to the process make up is called the supply chain.† (Elliot et al. 2010 p.21) Retail petrol outlets operate somewhat differently to conventional service stations, the retail petrol outlets are often situated near to a parent supermarket company (in the same complex) which makes supply of products other than fuel relatively easy as the distance for stock to travel is minimal. When looking at the fuel aspect, it can be seen that the logistics tend to become a lot more involved and a more defined supply chain emerges. * First fuel is sourced from their respective supplier (Caltex or Shell) on a relatively routine basis, as fuel is a required product for most of the community. * The fuel is then transported by truck from oil refineries which are based in more coastal areas (Caltex oil refinery in Kurnell NSW) which makes it easier to transfer oil from overseas oil barges when new shipments arrive. * When the trucks reach the retail petrol outlet the fuel is then pumped into underground holding tanks, where the fuel can now be distributed to the customer via the petrol pump and now exchange of fuels can be made for a profit. Conclusion This report was compiled in order to describe the four elements of the marketing mix: * Product * Price * Promotion * Place (distribution) The descriptions of these marketing mix elements were also shown in application; how they are applied when breaking down the four aspects in relation to retail petrol outlets. Focusing on the Caltex Woolworths and Coles Express partnerships it was able to be shown how the marketing mix elements are applied. Products have been broken down into specific fuels and other items which are available to potential customers, these products have also been categorised as either: Staple, Impulse or Emergency. Price has been shown to be of vital importance, and the outcome of the price has to be both beneficial to the seller, and seen as a good deal to the buyer. Promotion has also proven to be of high importance to the overall marketing of retail petrol outlets, the use of shopper dockets for discounts, and sponsorship for awareness and image are important promotional tools outlined above. Place (Distribution) outlines the logistics and supply chain which is in place for retail petrol outlets to gain their product in order to forward it onto the paying public to gain an overall profit. All four of these marketing mix elements play their own equally pivotal role in ensuring the successful operation of retail petrol outlets. References Coles Express website www.colesexpress.com.au Cranston, B. (2009) NSW: ACCC investigating supermarket petrol promotion. AAP Australian National News wire Elliott, G. Rundle-Thiele, S. Waller, D. (2010) Marketing. Pump Action, The Economist. (1996) Vol. 338 Issue 7950, page 58 Woolworths petrol website www.woolworthspetrol.com.au

Latvian Jews and the Holocaust :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Holocaust seemed as if it was one mans (Adolf Hitler) determination to exterminate all Jews in Europe, but in fact this is not completely true. The Holocaust was the determination of many men and woman of different backgrounds and languages. One of which is the people of Latvia. During WWI, the was was no less disruptive to the Jews than to anyone else. They were and used for both Capitalist exploitation and Communist conspiracy. During WWII they were beaten, killed, and/or imprisoned mercilessly in camps throughout Europe, not excluding the two camps in Riga, Latvia.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Latvian Jews had a long history. In 1897 the census for Latvia, just before WWI, reported a combined number of about 200,000 Jews. At this point, Riga held about 33,000 Jews. Since Kurland became a duchy of Poland in the sixteenth century, Jews of Luthuanian Poland moved north. There, even though, routinely reguarded as outsiders, having to pay taxes and fees and fines, Jews prospered and expanded themselves in number. They engaged in commerce of every variety including leasing, brokering, and peddling. Jew were goldsmiths, brandy distillers, artisans, tradesmen, and even sometimes hired as tax collectors. Jews were the ceter of economic life. They controlled exports of cereal, flax, eggs, and timber. Tanneries, sawmills, and banks were often owned by Jews, even clothing factories and stores were owned and operated by mostly Jews. Most well known doctors and lawyers and entertainers were Jewish, but of the 5,921 civil servants, only 21 were Jews. Around fifty percent were involved in commerce and trade, as opposed to the one percent of Latvians. This was because most Latvians were engaged in agricultural production. Jew also lived mostly in the city and town areas and created strong Jewish communities. After WWI, when the census was done again in 1925, Latvia had only counted for 95,675 Jews, less than half of pre-WWI. Now the aggrivated nationalist mind was getting very dissoriented by what had happened after Soviet annexation, the people were seeing the Jew and Bolshevism as one and the same, and as before, estermination was the only answer.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The massacres of Jews began immediately after the Soviet counterattcks on June 29, 1941, before German police and officials even arrived. In Daugavpils, all Jews between the ages of sixteen to sixty were called to the down town square where they were assembled and incarcerated. At one of the main streets in Riga, Bear Slayer Street (the bear stands for the Russians) were the two Riga ghettos.

Benefits of Procedural Justice Essay

Folger and Konovsky (1989) explain that procedural justice refers to the perceived fairness of the means used to determine the amounts of compensation employees receive. Coetzee (2004) further describes it as the extent to which fair procedures and processes are in place and adhered to in an organization, and to which individuals see their leaders being fair and sincere in all they do. This essay will explore the benefits of procedural justice and in particular present an argument that supports the statement that the perception of procedural justice by employees results into positive work outcomes. Skarlicki and Folger (1997) identify the following positive consequences of procedural justice: organization commitment, intent to stay with the organization, organizational citizenship behavior, trust in supervisors and workmates, satisfaction with decisions made as well as increased work effort, job satisfaction and performance. It is these positive outcomes that are expounded on in support of the statement that positive work outcomes arise from the perception of procedural justice by employees. McFarlin and Sweeney (1992) point out that procedures define the organizations capacity to treat employees fairly and therefore if they see the procedures as fair, employees may view the organization positively. This positivity results into high commitment and supervisor evaluations. Findings in the study by Folger and Konovsky (1989) also reveal that procedural justice has been shown to be positively related to organizational commitment. Furthermore, Moorman, Niehoff and Organ (1993) show that procedural justice influences affective commitment in particular. Affective commitment refers to one’s psychological attachment to the organization as well as their identification with it (Muchinsky, 2006). Procedural justice influences affective commitment in a way that the fair procedures of allocating resources and resolving disputes in organizations represent the view that employees are valued and it is this value that results in the employee being more attached to and identifying more with the organization. In addition, Organ (1988) suggests that perceptions of fairness may also promote effectiveness in organizations through influencing an employee’s decision to perform organizational citizenship behaviors because in exchange for being treated fairly, employees would engage in discretionary gestures of such behavior. Organizational citizenship behaviors are â€Å"those contributions that employees make to the overall welfare of the organization that go beyond the required duties of their job† (Muchinsky, 2006, p. 326). This behavior may include avoiding complaints, attendance better than the group norm and courtesy. Moorman et al. (1993) further explains that employees go above and beyond their prescribed roles by demonstrating conscientiousness toward their work, trying to prevent problems with other employees, informing others before taking important actions, and refraining from excessively complaining about work, because they feel the necessity to reciprocate the fair treatment they have received from the organization. This is therefore yet another positive work outcome of procedural fairness. Furthermore, trust, which according to McShane and Von Glinow (2009) refers to positive expectations one person has toward another in situations involving risk, is yet another outcome that arises from procedural justice. Pearce, Bigley and Branyczki (1998) show that perceptions of procedural justice were associated not only with a greater trust in supervisors but also with a greater trust in peers as employees perceive their rights to have been honoured and can therefore reciprocate in any situation, since this trust is based on expectations that are held in common and can be reciprocated. In terms of job satisfaction and morale, those who perceive justice in their organizations are more likely to feel satisfied with their job and less likely to leave their job (Bakhshi, 2009). Moorman et al. , (2009) further explains that procedural justice may be a basis for an employee’s level of work satisfaction when that employee has developed a positive view of the organization due to its existing fair procedures. This then boosts the level of performance on the job. On the contrary however, perception of procedural injustice therefore in an organization will lead to a range of negative outcomes including low levels of organizational commitment and job satisfaction, reduced task performance and employee withholding of organizational citizenship behaviour (Pearce et al. , 1998). These are negative work outcomes that may therefore hinder the progress of n organization in the long run. In conclusion, this essay has defined procedural justice, and supported the statement that that the perception of procedural justice by employees results in positive work outcomes. This has been done by presenting in detail using a range of social science literature and empirical research the various outcomes namely trust, job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and organizational citizenship and identifying the negative outcomes of procedural injustice.

Community Circle Class Meetings for Classroom Management

One way to build a student-centered learning community is through class meetings, also known as Community Circle. This idea is adapted from the popular book called Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us by Seth Godin. Frequency and Time Required Consider holding class meetings weekly or biweekly, depending on your needs and preferences. Some school years, you may have a particularly delicate classroom environment that needs extra attention. Other years, getting together every other week may be enough. Budget approximately 15-20 minutes for each class meeting session at approximately the same time on a predetermined day; for example, schedule the meeting right before lunchtime on Fridays. The Class Meeting Agenda As a group, sit in a circle on the ground and stick to some very certain rules, which are: Appreciation of Others (i.e. no put-downs)Listen AttentivelyRespect EveryoneRight to Pass (students can pass when its their turn) Additionally, designate a special gesture to keep things under control. For example, when the teacher raises her hand, everyone else raises their hand and stops talking. You may want to make this gesture different from the attention signal you use during the rest of the day. At each class meeting, announce a different prompt or format for sharing. The Tribes book offers a wealth of ideas for this purpose. For instance, it is effective to go around the circle and finish sentences, such as: One thing I like about our classroom is....Im grateful that....One good thing that happened to me recently is....I wish....Im bigger than a ______. Im smaller than a ________.I hope that.... Interview Circle Another idea is Interview Circle where one student sits in the middle and the other students ask him/her three autobiographical questions. For instance, they ask about brothers and sister, pets, likes and dislikes, etc. The interviewee can choose to pass on any of the questions. I model how it works by going first. The kids enjoy calling on their classmates and learning about each other. Conflict Resolution Most importantly, if there is a problem in the classroom that needs to be addressed, the class meeting is the most appropriate place to bring it up and model problem solving with your class. Offer time for apologies and clearing the air. With your guidance, your students should be able to practice these important interpersonal skills with maturity and grace. Watch It Work Fifteen minutes per week is a small investment to make in order to strengthen the bonds between you and your students. Students sense that their opinions, dreams, and insights are valued and treated with respect. It also gives them a chance to practice their listening, speaking, and interpersonal skills. Try it in your classroom. See how it works for you! Edited By: Janelle Cox